without a missionary component to its philosophy, Buddhism extended itself over cul-
tural areas in South and East Asia and has millions of followers all over the world. It
is even one of the fastest-growing religions in the United States.^201 What appeals to
many Westerners is that, unlike most Western religions, Buddhism is“grounded in
reason not faith and therefore is in harmony with the prevailing spirit of scientific
empiricism.”^202 Yet in spite of its popularity, many people do not fully understand
Buddhism. Thera, quoting the philosopher T. H. Huxley, mentions some of the rea-
sons people are often bewildered by Buddhism:“Buddhism is a system which knows
no God in the Western sense, which denies a soul to man, which counts the belief in
immortality a blunder, which refuses any efficacy to prayer and sacrifice, which bids
men look to nothing but their own efforts for salvation.”^203Origins
Like Christianity and Islam, Buddhism is also associated with a“founder.”However,
Buddhism separates itself from those and other traditions because it is nontheistic.
Although Buddha“claimed the realization of the ultimate truth, he did not identify
himself as the special representative of a transcendent God.”^204
In spite of the fact that oral histories associated with most religious founders have
often been altered and embellished, a clear picture of the history of Buddhism is
accessible. An Indian prince named Siddhartha Gautama founded Buddhism. The
narrative of how the prince became enlightened begins with the fact that at the
time of his birth, his father was a king, and the prince was born into great luxury
and opulence that he would later reject. As Siddhartha himself said,“I wore gar-
ments of silk and my attendants held a white umbrella over me.”^205 In spite of all
his lavish surroundings, the prince felt a deep discontentment with his life. Garfin-
kel offers an account of what was to become a major event in the founding of
Buddhism:
At age 29 the married Prince, disillusioned with his opulence, ventured out of his palace
and for the first time encountered old age, sickness, and death. So moved was he by this
brush with the painful realities of life that he left his comfortable home to search for an end
to human suffering.^206
For the next six years, often called the Period of Enquiry, the prince engaged in
deep meditation and lived an austere life as he searched for answers to explain the
suffering he saw. After examining his thoughts during this period, he emerged from
his self-imposed seclusion and became Buddha. As Clark notes,“Siddhartha became
a Buddha (Enlightened One) in a flash of insight one day while meditating. He
immediately gathered his disciples and began to teach them what he had learned.”^207
prasada) the prince experienced when he discovered there was a way to overcome the
suffering of life.”^208
From that time until his death at age eighty in 483 BCE, Buddha traveled through-
out the Ganges Valley sharing his insights with anyone who would listen. Some com-
munication scholars suggest that part of Buddha’s early success was influenced by the
fact that he was an excellent communicator. As Dissanayake notes,“The Buddha
himself was a supremely persuasive communicator. He preached to the people in anOrigins 145Copyright 2017 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).